Delay hits works for new prison

The construction works for the new prison in Ka-Ho, Coloane, have suffered a delay of six months, authorities conceded yesterday. But the government promised to catch up and open the new facility by 2014.
The first phase of the construction was launched on August 2010 but has been delayed due to technical reasons, the Macau prison director Lee Kam Cheong said on the sidelines of a Chinese New Year celebration at the jail.
Quoted by TDM, authorities confirmed that the geological characteristics of the Ka Ho hill have caused a delay in the foundation works for the new prison, along with heavy rain and lack of human resources.
But the Administration will demand that the contractor makes up for the delay and promised to ensure the second phase of the construction – which was slated for the second quarter of 2011 – works begin this year.
The new prison was scheduled to open by the end of 2014 and will have the capacity for 2,700 inmates.
The current jail was designed to hold 1,297 inmates and it’s close to becoming overcrowded. At the end of last year there were a total of 1,030 inmates, up by 101 from 2010. The increase has led authorities to expand the female section with a further 100 beds.